How Meditation Changed My Life

Meditation has changed my life profoundly, and a part of my calling is to teach others how to practise and grow with mindfulness and meditation.

Why I trust in the healing power of meditation

Meditation is something I’ve practised since the early eighties. In the year following my son’s death I did a number of courses and every one included meditation, this is how I got started and it helped enormously during that difficult time.

By 1985 I started using meditation to help me attain my goals. Every day when I arrived at work the first thing I would do was lock my office door, sit on the floor and meditate for 20 minutes, then I’d start my work day. I can’t say I’ve never missed a day, but my meditation practice has been consistent and I credit it with enabling me to cope with the many challenges I’ve faced in my life.

At 16, my youngest daughter Laura, was admitted to a psychiatric clinic with major depression. Over the following years she was hospitalised a number of times whenever she was at risk of suicide. Meditation got me through that time, and it helped Laura to turn her state around and manage what can be a crippling illness. Because of this Laura has been able to overcome so many fears as she backpacked around the world and had some amazing experiences such as the time spent in the Amazon, searching for the northern lights in Norway and sleeping on the Afghanistan border protected by Turkmenistan army as the Taliban were camped nearby (as a mother I can’t say I was crazy about that one).

More recently my daughter Lisa had a liver transplant and there were times when she was close to death, and whenever I need guidance or my spirits lifted I meditated. I cannot recommend it highly enough because if you practice it consistently it changes your response to stress, and that’s something I can personally attest to.

Ask and receive

Many years ago I established the habit of asking questions, as a way of seeking guidance, before every meditation and all of my work has evolved from the answers I’ve received.

Some people say, I asked, but I didn’t get an answer. We always get an answer, it’s just that we don’t always listen, or the answer comes in a shape or form we don’t expect or like, and we ignore it. We all know that life doesn’t always go the way we plan but when you stay open and willing life can be so much easier.

How meditation can help you

When we meditate consistently we increase our tolerance to stress. The difference between meditation and relaxation techniques is that meditation changes the structure of our brain and over time the way we respond to stress, whereas relaxation is a more immediate tool that can be used to manage and release stress. There is a place for both.

Mindfulness is a state of experiencing pure awareness. It helps us to separate our thoughts from who we are. It encourages us to become the observer, which in turn enables us to release negative thoughts and emotions.

MRI Scans show that after eight weeks of mindfulness and/or meditation practice our fight or flight response weakens, while our attention and concentration gets stronger. How much this occurs depends upon how much time we dedicate to this practice. You don’t have to spend hours meditating, 20 minutes a day is enough, but if you can only meditate for 10 minutes, it’s still beneficial.

Meditation is such a simple, easy practice that can be done by anyone. If you don’t know how simply go to YouTube and search for a guided meditation you can listen to, there are hundreds, if not thousands freely available. My favourite is, I am that I am, by Wayne Dyer, and I listen to this most days. Marianne Williamson has some lovely meditations as well.

Mindfulness and meditation aren’t about changing anything, they are tools that allow us to experience inner peace even during the most stressful times. But there is so much more we can gain from using them. Mindfulness and meditation enhance our intuition. I listen to my intuition every day and ask for guidance on simple things from looking for a parking spot to major life decisions. I trust my intuition implicitly to always guide me to the right choice and I can only do that because I am so in tune with it.

The sooner you start using these valuable tools you’ll not only enrich your own life, but you will also become a role model for others, particularly if you have children.

How mindfulness can help children and teens

Like many people’ I’ve been saddened by teen suicide and I wanted to write a course to help prevent this, yet when I did my research I found that what would help children and teenagers most was to learn mindfulness, and that’s how my mindfulness teacher course came about.

Teen suicide is usually something that is an impulsive action when feelings get too much to bear. I even made a half-hearted attempt myself when I was 18 and broken-hearted. As 95% of all behaviour is habitual, teaching children and teens to develop the habit of pausing and observing before taking any action could save a life. It will also help them to grow up to be better-balanced adults.

Mindfulness is also known to build resilience. It can help us manage pain, make wiser financial choices, communicate better and enjoy life more.

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Anne Hartley

Anne Hartley is the founder and CEO of Hart Life Coaching
Anne is also the author of several books including Financially Free, Love the Life You Live, Love Your Money - Love Your Life and Life Lessons. www.hartlifecoaching.com.au

2 Comments

Mandy Morris

April 24, 2019 at 10:29 am

Thanks for sharing Anne. It is always good to read your wise words. Wishing you and family good health and joy Love Mandy m